The History of The Cyberpunk Genre

Monday, 5 October 2015

Where cyberpunk started is really relative to the person. I'd say that early dystopian literature such as 1984 (as I've mentioned plenty of times on this blog) started it all, others would disagree saying that 1984 was more about the Russian revolution. However most will agree that the cyberpunk movement began to be recognised and be more popular in the 80's . . .

Between William Gibson's book Neuromancer (1984) and Ridley Scott's film Blade Runner (1982), the cyberpunk genre began to rise. Both explored unheard of technologies and anxieties, which created the whole new unique side of the science fiction genre.

Then films like Terminator (1984) and Robocop (1987) quickly added to the growing phenomenon.

Then it was the 90's that brought more cyberpunk into the zeitgeist with big blockbusters such as The Matrix (1999) bringing new ideas such as virtual realities to the table.

These films and books all influence writers and filmmakers today, as they created the foundations of the cyberpunk genre. The common elements that make them cyberpunk are dystopian futures, overrun by governments/some kind of power and technology that is unheard of (in the time that it was made). The protagonist feels out of place/an urge to rebel against this society.